Ad-hocism: Three capital varsities without heads
Education minister reconstitutes committee to appoint new officials.
ISLAMABAD:
Three major universities in the capital have been operating without permanent heads after the posts fell vacant over four months ago.
A Higher Education Commission (HEC) committee that was tasked with appointing new heads at the three varsities was dissolved and reconstituted by Education Minister Balighur Rehman last week.
Former Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) vice-chancellor (VC) Dr Masoom Yasinzai was appointed as the acting rector at International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) in February. Yasinzai had been holding the additional charge of IIUI rector for the last two years.
Meanwhile, Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) VC Dr Nazir Ahmed Sanghi retired in March and Dr Asghar Ali Chishti has been the acting VC ever since. Similarly, senior QAU faculty member Dr Etizaz Ahmad has been filling in as VC on acting charge basis since Yasinzai retired in February.
The HEC committee had vetted and shortlisted some 300 applicants, including those who are holding acting charge. HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmad says the committee received 150 applications for the AIOU job, 129 for the QAU job and about 90 applied for the post of IIUI rector.
But after four months, the committee has been reconstituted by the education minister. The new panel will consist of the minister, the education secretary, the HEC chairman and four experts. The delay and reconstitution have left the three varsities with uncertainty, while the ministry has yet to appoint four experts.
Pending matters
The delay has allowed the acting heads to execute their powers more ‘radically’ without planning for the long term or attending to the pending issues.
A QAU official told The Express Tribune that a number of issues have gone unresolved since Dr Yasinzai changed jobs.
“Marriage grants, investigations, medical facility for faculty and other issues such as tenure track system for teachers have yet to be addressed,” the senior faculty member said. There are about 290 vacant seats at the university in grades one through 17, he added.
The AIOU acting VC transferred key officials including the registrar, additional registrar and legal advisor soon after his appointment, since they were thought to be against the acting principal.
Last year, the HEC announced it would devise a mechanism to initiate the hiring of new varsity heads prior to the completion of incumbents’ tenures. The HEC chairman says they are still working on the policy.
The education minister said the four experts will be notified soon and the committee will start interviewing candidates next week.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2014.
Three major universities in the capital have been operating without permanent heads after the posts fell vacant over four months ago.
A Higher Education Commission (HEC) committee that was tasked with appointing new heads at the three varsities was dissolved and reconstituted by Education Minister Balighur Rehman last week.
Former Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) vice-chancellor (VC) Dr Masoom Yasinzai was appointed as the acting rector at International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) in February. Yasinzai had been holding the additional charge of IIUI rector for the last two years.
Meanwhile, Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) VC Dr Nazir Ahmed Sanghi retired in March and Dr Asghar Ali Chishti has been the acting VC ever since. Similarly, senior QAU faculty member Dr Etizaz Ahmad has been filling in as VC on acting charge basis since Yasinzai retired in February.
The HEC committee had vetted and shortlisted some 300 applicants, including those who are holding acting charge. HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmad says the committee received 150 applications for the AIOU job, 129 for the QAU job and about 90 applied for the post of IIUI rector.
But after four months, the committee has been reconstituted by the education minister. The new panel will consist of the minister, the education secretary, the HEC chairman and four experts. The delay and reconstitution have left the three varsities with uncertainty, while the ministry has yet to appoint four experts.
Pending matters
The delay has allowed the acting heads to execute their powers more ‘radically’ without planning for the long term or attending to the pending issues.
A QAU official told The Express Tribune that a number of issues have gone unresolved since Dr Yasinzai changed jobs.
“Marriage grants, investigations, medical facility for faculty and other issues such as tenure track system for teachers have yet to be addressed,” the senior faculty member said. There are about 290 vacant seats at the university in grades one through 17, he added.
The AIOU acting VC transferred key officials including the registrar, additional registrar and legal advisor soon after his appointment, since they were thought to be against the acting principal.
Last year, the HEC announced it would devise a mechanism to initiate the hiring of new varsity heads prior to the completion of incumbents’ tenures. The HEC chairman says they are still working on the policy.
The education minister said the four experts will be notified soon and the committee will start interviewing candidates next week.
Published in The Express Tribune, June 24th, 2014.